Chef Jessica Carreira was born in San José, California and showed early on an appreciation for the culinary arts. She travelled extensively accompanying her parents wine business and was exposed to different world cuisines, flavors and ingredients. However, she always returned to the tastes and aromas of her heritage in Portugal. After graduating from the Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Los Angeles she then lived for three years in Portugal where she perfected the techniques and learned the ingredients mostly used in Portuguese cuisine. While in Portugal she worked at some of the best restaurants in Lisbon and Porto with some of the best Chefs in Portugal. Lastly, she worked in the kitchen of the One Star Michelin restaurant Restaurant Eleven in Lisbon where she become Pastry Chef and responsible for the entire dessert menu at the age of 20. In 2015, Chef Jessica opened Adega in San José and 10 months later, it was recognized by the Michelin Guide with One Star, the first and only in the city of San José, California.